The term “engine nacelle”, or more simply “nacelle”, is to be understood as referring to a tubular casing with an aerodynamic shape designed to contain an aircraft engine. The nacelle is typically fixed to the wing of the aircraft, but may also be fixed to the fuselage or to the vertical tail assembly of the aircraft. The nacelle extends along an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis (front-rear direction) of the aircraft. The nacelle is open both at its front end to allow entry of the air and at its rear end to allow exit of the exhaust gases. The nacelle typically comprises an inner wall and an outer wall which are connected to each other at the front end along a leading edge and at the rear end along a trailing edge. The inner wall and the outer wall, together with the leading edge and the trailing edge, enclose a cavity.
The formation of ice on the leading edge of the nacelle is considered to be particularly dangerous since fragments of ice may become detached from this edge and strike the blades of the compressor of the jet engine. Ice fragmentation systems, designed to facilitate separation of the ice from the leading edge of the nacelle, have therefore been developed and are currently used. They consist, for example, of compressed-air systems or heating systems using electric resistances. These known systems, however, are not particularly effective since they intervene only when the ice has already formed and therefore, by causing separation of the ice from the leading edge, they may even increase the risk that fragments of ice may strike the blades of the compressor. Moreover, known de-icing systems are not very efficient from the point of view of power consumption.